So Far Away
by Eylanan
Summary: The daughter of Sam and Mikaela is the lone survivor of a decepticon attack. She has a special power that leaves her a potential decepticon target. The autobots are willing to do anything to keep the seven year old safe; even hide her from the world.
1. So Far Away

So Far Away

by Blossoming Tree Flower

I don't own Transformers, the characters or anything of such. I'm merely expressing my creativity. Enjoy, review, criticize, whatever you feel is necessary, I welcome criticism.

So Far Away

"_Just one chance_

_Just one breath_

_Just in case there's just one left_

…_cause you know…you know…you know_

_That I love you… I've loved you along_

_And I miss you…." _A song crooned over the radio station in the Witwicky backyard. It was the Fourth of July and the sun was ready to set.

Six year old Jazzie (Jasmine Samantha) ran around her backyard with a sparkler in hand and squealing with delight as her parents and grandparents watched with amusement.

She watched the little sparks of light as they flickered about, lighting the semi-darkness.

"It's a shame the bots couldn't be here tonight" her dad mused from the porch. Jazzie smiled, he meant the Autobots.

"What were they doing tonight anyway hun?'" her mommy asked resting her head on her husband's shoulder.

"Bee said something about a strange signal from their com links. They think it may have been a new arrival. That'll be the second this month."

"We should've went with them"

"And miss the fireworks?" Jazzie yelled horrified. Her parents laughed.

"We would've been in the way. Besides, it may not be an autobot." Her mom explained, a tone of seriousness emanating from her voice.

"Decepticons…." Jazzie hissed. Although she was only six that word was one she knew was a bad and horrible thing.

"Let's not think about them right now. This is a happy day." Grandma Judy said to break the topic.

Her husband and she finally learned about the Autobots the day Jazzie was born when Ratchet took Mikaela to the hospital. Let's just say that under stress, you often blow your cover. Ratchet couldn't believe him, of all the Autobots, slipped up and talked to Mikaela, with Sam's parents in the back. It had been rather amusing explaining who exactly Ratchet was between contractions.

The song faded from the radio and soon the national anthem began to play.

"Here we go Jazzie!" Sam yelled with a broad smile. To the west, fireworks began to explode in the sky. The colors and shimmers danced in Jazzie's eyes.

She reached up to touch them, shrieking with delight. They were almost within her reach…

BOOM!

A large explosion erupted, sending Jazzie falling to her knees. She heard her parent's and grandparent's screams of terror as Jazzie looked up to see what was so horrifying.

Plain as day, towering above her was a dark mechanical figure...and it didn't have the autobot insignia Jazzie recognized.

Before she could register what was happening, a pair of strong hands grabbed her from behind and began to pull her towards the house.

Her mom picked her up and began to run as a number of explosions took over the neighborhood; they were all targeting the Witwicky home. Jazzie felt her mom's panting breath as she dug deeper into the body of her carrier. But, before they could get to the house, both Jazzie and Mikaela were thrown backwards…no, dragged.

The monster-mech had grabbed them. Jazzie felt herself and her mother being pulled upwards.

"_**Remember me human-scum" **_the voice snarled. Jazzie screamed and Mikaela hugged her child harder, covering every inch of her from the decepticon.

"MIKAELA…JASMINE!" she heard her father yelling from what seemed like miles away.

Then, Jazzie felt like she was falling…she was falling. Fear.

Her mind could only register fear. There was no panic, only adrenaline. Jazzie felt a strange tingling sensation surround her body. She could her mom scream in pain from the sparks that were emitting from Jazzie's frame. Yet Mikaela held onto Jazzie harder than ever before; they landed.

Jazzie couldn't breath. In shock of landing so hard onto the ground, she struggled to regain her senses.

Fire

Screams

Smoke

It all stung at Jazzie as she lay there in her mother's arms. She heard their screams of pain and she didn't dare look. Soon it all became silent.

"_**VENGENCE! MY FALLEN MASTER HAS BEEN AVENGED!"**_

Without checking to make sure he had finished the job, little Jazzie—her heart barely fluttering—lay unconscious in her dead mother's arms.

"_I keep dreaming_

_You'll be with me_

_And you'll never go…_

_Stop breathing_

_If I don't see you, anymore" _

Jazzie woke to pain; so much pain that she couldn't find where it hurt. Everything hurt. There was nothing around her; she just floated in an airless vacuum. 

Then she heard it…

"Jazzie…please wake up. Come on Jazzie, stay with me please!"

"Bee?" she croaked. Her airless state was replaced with a solid feeling of being on a bed. The pain doubled.

"Oh Jazzie, I'm sorry…I'm so sorry…please open your eyes." His voice was wrenched with panic.

Jazzie, with effort, opened her eye lids and was blinded by light. She immediately closed them.

"The light!" she whispered in shock.

"Ratchet, turn down light." A new voice came, it was Optimus.

"Optimus… is that…"

"Yes Jazzie, I'm here. We all are." His voice sounded distant. She tried to open her eyes again. The light was not as painful this time.

She inclined her head a bit to come face to face with a large group of Autobots all staring at her with concern.

"Thank Primus you're alright Jazzie" Ironhide said.

There was a moment of silence. Jazzie looked at the group assembled before her. In the center were Optimus, Ratchet, Ironhide, Bumblebee and Red Alert. In the corner, WheelJack, Sideswipe, Sunstreaker, Hound, Mirage, Perceptor, Inferno, Kup, Cliff Jumper, Gears and Blurr all stood. Even JetFire was peeking into the crowded med bay from the hallway.

"What happened?" were the only words she could think of. They weren't the words the Autobots wanted to have her say.

"I'm afraid you were _visited_ by Blackout. The signal was a decoy." Optimus answered with a deep sigh.

"Mom? Dad? Grandma…"

"We couldn't save them" Optimus replied reluctantly.

Jazzie sat there for a moment, taking in everything as much as the six year old could. Her parents were dead. Her grandparents were dead. They couldn't be dead. She was just playing the backyard with them. They were watching fireworks…they were alive.

"No! That's not true…it can't be!" she hugged her tiny knees, trying to suppress sobs with no avail.

She felt someone hugging her. It was Bee's alt-mode. His yellow hair with a black streak down the center tickled her cheek. She cried openly into his shirt.

"Get your afts out of here…all of you" she heard Ratchet hiss at the other Autobots. Shuffling of feet and swishing of doors told her that she and Bee—for the most part—were alone.

"I should've been there Jazzie, I know. We didn't even think this would happen. We assumed you would be safe"

"I am safe…I'm with you." She said her voice cracking.

"It's time for you to rest little missy" Ratchet said approaching the two.

"Can Bee stay with me?" her eyes still glistened with tears.

"So long as you get your rest, I'm not concerned."

Jazzie snuggled into her covers, holding Bee's alt-mode hand tightly. Soon it slackened as she drifted off into sleep. Bee remained in that same position for twelve hours.

For a week Jazzie remained in med bay. Under Ratchet's orders she was not to leave the room save a disaster was to strike that room; it was very boring. Of course she had frequent visitors, especially from Bee, but it wasn't the same as being able to walk on your own. She had to get out. Just laying there replaying their deaths over and over was becoming too painful.

Day eight into her "captivity" Jazzie found the perfect opportunity to escape for a while. Ratchet had to go out for more equipment—Sunstreaker had "accidentally" run over an important pile of data tablets and got the slag beaten out of him by Red Alert.

As SunStreaker laid temporarily offline, Jazzie managed to slip off her berth and crawl out to the hallway as Wheel Jack was coming to administer some fresh energon to the foolish Lamborghini.

Her legs were in pain from lack of use, but Jazzie needed to move and with each stride she grew stronger. Roaming through the corridors looking for Bee, Jazzie could hear Optimus' voice, he sounded frustrated.

"I know this has been a difficult time for you but we need to discuss this. I don't want to wait too long, Jasmine's future needs to be decided."

"I think she should stay here, that's my vote" Jazzie heard Bee's voice reply.

"Live with Autobots, away from her own kind, are you sure that is a good idea Bumblebee?" Perceptor's voice replied.

"What would you do? Put her in a human orphanage?" Ironhide asked with a tone of disgust.

"Of course not, she would remain with her family, the closest living relative" Optimus replied.

"She could live with us, I would have to talk with Sarah of course…" she heard Will reply.

"And what if the 'Cons find out she's still alive?" Red Alert retorted. "Just leave her to their mercy?"

"That is a risk I am…" Optimus started gravely.

"Don't you slaggin' say that Prime!" Bee yelled at the top of his processor "You may not care about her, but I sure as Primus do! I won't leave her out in the open for bait."

"Bumblebee…" Prime began

"Bee…just calm down" Kup reasoned

"Don't talk to me Kup. What is wrong with all of you? Don't you care about Jazzie…her parents? Do you even give a slag?"

"BUMBLEBEE!" Prime's voice vibrated across the halls "Do not think for one nano-click that I don't care about Jazzie's wellbeing. I was trying to say that I would never take such a risk. Jazzie is too important; you remember the "injury" you received from her when we arrived, right Bee?"

"Yeah, but I don't see…"

"That power is too great to be left alone, un-mastered. Jazzie would destroy herself and anyone around her if it got out of control. I guess she has to stay here. For the betterment of herself and the planet."

Jazzie just listened in shock. What power did she have? Why would the decepticreeps want it?

"Jazzie, what are you doing out of bed?" a voice whispered inches from her face.

Jazzie screamed involuntarily as she turned to face Mirage towering over her. Silence came from Prime's office and shuffling feet cascaded towards the door. Six Autobots and one human exited the doorway looking down at the guilty girl.

"Jazzie? What are you doing here?" Bee asked kneeling to her level with worry.

"I was just walking…Hatchet's med bay was starting to get creepy." Jazzie replied in a small voice.

Bee smiled at Ratchet's popular nickname, though Prime frowned. Sunstreaker and Sideswipe would be given a talk later.

"You are extremely lucky that Ratchet isn't back yet. If he found out you weren't in bed…" Prime began but Wheel Jack's voice and thundering footfalls came through the halls.

"PRIME! Prime, Jazzie isn't in the med bay! She's….here?" Wheel Jack looked like he was about to go into stasis lock. "Well…that was a waste of energon. Kid, you haven't been here long and already you're putting my spark on alert."

"Sorry 'Jack." Jazzie whispered looking at her socks.

"Who's sorry?" the dread voice asked as he walked down the hallway towards the group with supplies in hand…

So Jazzie moved in with the Autobots at the abandoned Sector Seven base. A small room was cleared for her (well to the Autobots it was small) but to Jazzie it was larger than her old room and the backyard combined. The backyard. Jazzie still had nightmares about that night and it took Bee, Sideswipe, and Hound to get her back to sleep.

"It's a common thing, the human Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, you have no idea how many Bots had it after their first battle with the 'Cons" Kup said to a disgruntled Sideswipe, who began complaining about not getting a recharge.

For fear of a similar assault, Will Lennox and his family moved into the Autobot base as well. Maggie and Glen soon came to live with them when Jazzie was seven. They all assumed some form of guardianship over Jazzie; Sarah and Will were like parents, Glen as an uncle, and Maggie as an aunt. Of course the Autobots were also the girl's guardians but in a different way.

Perceptor took over Jazzie's education with help from Prime, Ratchet and Wheel Jack (every bot helped the girl in some shape or form). Ironhide, Kup and Sideswipe began to train Jazzie combatively so she would be able to defend herself. Mirage taught her stealth, Kup would rant long about war where she learned tactics. Bluestreak taught her manners and Sideswipe and Sunny helped break those lessons (they were the cool uncles of the group). Bee was her pseudo father and friend and she would rarely leave his optics.

They all became her family and she readily accepted that; the transition from her parent's death to this new life went somewhat smoothly.

Here was the kicker: she never left the base. Yes, she went outside, but she never went further than two miles away (that was a special occasion). This did not bother her at first; however, it became increasingly apparent that if she did not leave soon, she would go crazy…

Author's note- I picked the name Jasmine because I thought Sam and Mikaela would try to honor the fallen Autobot. Plus Jazzie/ Jazz is a sweet name for a girl.

Review! Please…

Chapter 2

Six years later

Jazzie (or Jazz as she now preferred it) ran. Missiles shot around her from every direction. Her accelerated heart-rate pumped pure adrenaline as she dove, jumped and slid around the projectiles. With nothing to defend herself with other than her intuition, strength and agility, Jazz began to panic as she soon felt an energy drop. The missiles kept coming.

Her target lay ahead; a simple silver button that would stop a rocket from ejecting and releasing millions of poisonous gases into earth's atmosphere, thus killing the entire population. She stopped a moment to catch her breath. Two minutes still remained on the clock. Her pause was a mistake; from behind, a single missile shot forward and grazed her arm. She screamed as a painful tingling erupted in her arm. She fell to her knees to re-gather her bearings.

Anger shot through her. This training exercise was getting frustrating. No matter how hard she tried, she would be hit and hit again. The anger consumed her and then something strange happened.

Her arms began to glow a silvery white and had a tingling sensation. From her hands, a spark of electricity shot out and disrupted the flight of several incoming missiles. More still came. With a mind of its own, Jazzie felt this electricity begin to shoot out sporadically, overloading everything it came into contact with. Not again.

"IRONHIDE! Stop the missiles! I cannot control this!" she screamed at the top of her lungs as she desperately tried to gain control. The thirteen year old girl finally could no longer handle the pressure. The only way to stop this was to either let the electricity run out her strength (destroying everything in its path) or knock herself out to cut off the power supply. Guess which one she chose.

Gritting her teeth, she ran forward headlong towards one of the walls of the training room as fast as her legs could run. She could hear the power of the training session die and hard footfalls chasing her from behind. More than likely it was Bee.

"This is so gonna hurt" she muttered through clenched teeth.

She made impact. Jazz felt her body slip away. The last thought she had was "I hate doing this…"

White light. That was the first thing she processed. The second thing she processed was a huge lump on her forehead that throbbed and threatened to knock her out again with agonizing pain. She finally heard voices.

"...the second time in the past two weeks Ironhide. Why make her use this power if the only way to stop it is through self-inflicted pain? Are you that much of a glitch-head?" That was Ratchet alright.

"I do not force her to use anything Hatchet!" Jazz smiled "Her own strength and ability is what I expect her to use. This ability comes on its own. I have as much control over when it arises as she does."

"Perhaps this means you should teach her how to use this power more conservatively, not just throw her in the training room and hit the start button!"

"Hey, don't yell, her hearing receptors aren't as strong as yours" That was definitely Bee.

"What exactly are you trying to say Bee?" Jazz asked sitting up.

The three turned to the weakened girl on the med table.

"Jazz, how do you feel?" Bee asked instantly approaching her side.

"I'm alright, just like last week. How does the training room look?" she replied with guilt.

"It's looked better, it would've been worse if you hadn't…." Ironhide began to say when he was interjected by Ratchet.

"If you hadn't slaggin' used all your energy on that fragging ability of yours!" Ratchet finished.

"Hey, language Hatchet! I'm still a minor remember." Jazz replied coolly "And besides, how am I supposed to know how to control this thing. None of you guys can explain it or help me control it. All I know is that whenever the slagging glowing starts, I'm really angry."

"Then you should learn to control your anger." Ratchet said in a slow deadly voice that was about ready to yell profanity. "I don't want to have to keep scooping you off the floor of the training room."

Jazz wanted to reply "Are you gonna join me in those anger management classes" but a new voice arrived.

"That is why I am banning her training sessions until Jasmine can control this power."

Only one voice called her "Jasmine"; Prime stood in the doorway with a group of heads staring around his shoulders to get a glimpse of the scene inside. They had obviously heard about the training room accident and if they didn't, Ratchet and Ironhide's yell-fest could be heard echoing across the halls of the base at Hoover Dam. Prime didn't look angry, but he was very close to losing his "cool" over these petty arguments.

"What?!" exclaimed 'Hide and Jazz.

"If this is such an issue and it threatens her health, I don't want her to practice it until she has control." Prime replied simply.

"That means extra lessons with Perceptor" Jazz muttered in horror.

Perceptor gave a small scoff from the hallway.

"Not that anything is wrong with your lessons…" Jazz replied quickly. Perceptor was a nice bot, but if you got him angry…well, let's not go there.

"It means you and I are going to have control management sessions Jasmine" Prime said sternly "Your recent behavior is unacceptable and when you can learn to control this ability of yours, then we will discuss continuing your training."

Jazz looked at him with a bit of fear. She loved practicing combat moves with 'Hide. It was the best part about living on the base; the only good part about living on the base. Jazz decided to test her luck.

"I would be less bitter if I actually left this place, ever. See other people. I love the Lennoxes, Glen and Maggie, but can't I ever go out to the real world?"

The air stiffened immediately.

Optimus gave her a look that seemed to possess a bit of pity.

"You are perfectly aware that this is not an option." Jazz glared at him

"And why isn't it?" The others looked at her as if she sprouted wings.

"Jazzie, you're tired. I'll take you to your room" Bee said trying to break the tension, extending a hand.

"I'm not tired; I just need to know why. It's not like the decepti-creepers will be waiting for me the second I enter a city. They think I'm dead remember?!"

That struck a chord on everyone.

_6 years previous_

_A gray sky hung over Tranquil Endings Cemetery as a strange congregation hovered around five graves. Four out of place men stood, all in black suits. One with blonde hair with black streaks, holding a young girl's hand, a Grey haired man with spectacles on the bridge of his pointed nose. A burly bouncer-looking man with eagle fierce eyes, and a tall grandfatherly man standing next to him, an expression of deep solemn written across his face. _

_Further back, a large group of men stood near their vehicles, all different ages and appearances, Secretary Keller, William Lennox and his family, and even several members of the disbanded sector seven stood staring at the five graves. _

_The first one read:_

_Here Lies Samuel J. Witwicky_

_Brave Soldier_

_Dear Friend and Father_

_Brother in Arms_

_The second:_

_Here Lies Mikaela Banes-Witwicky_

_Loving Mother and Friend_

_Strong Comrade_

_Here Lies Ron S. Witwicky_

_Loving Father and Husband_

_Strong and Brave_

_Here Lies Judy Witwicky_

_Loving Mother and Wife_

_Friend and Good Soul_

_Here Lies Jasmine Samantha Witwicky_

_Beloved Daughter_

_May her soul rise above the sky into everlasting Peace _

_Jazzie stared at her own grave site in confusion. No matter how many times Optimus had explained that this was the only way to protect her, she did not like it. Ironhide moved closer to Prime and whispered "They're here"_

_Jazzie heard this and began to shake._

"_They are here to make sure that Blackout was successful. They wouldn't dare attack. Even decepticons have moral codes embedded in them." _

_Jazzie sniffled, even though it was still July, today had been a damp day. Bee knelt beside her. _

"_It's all right…Annabelle. They are at peace" he said this with much difficulty." The real Annabelle was at the base, Jazzie couldn't risk being recognized so she borrowed Annabelle's name for the day. _

"_I'm not" she said, silent tears streaking down her face. Bee picked her up and headed back to his yellow Camero. Bee's alt form was leaking tears as well. He didn't want to leave his Sam there underground; he didn't want to face the facts. But he had to be strong, for Jazzie. That's what Sam would've wanted. _

_Eventually the other men returned to their respected vehicles and headed in the same direction: home. _

"_**Barricade, what is your status." **_

"_**I'm watching the primitive human burial procession. The Witwickys' have been terminated."**_

"_**All of them?"**_

"_**Yes Starscream, Blackout was successful. Not even the little fleshling survived. A pity, it would've made a great pet." **_

"_**Don't you go soft on the fleshies. They are nothing but scum under our mighty feet." **_

"_**Never sir. Returning to base. Soundwave is trailing the Autobots." **_

"_**Don't be too long, Thundercracker needs your assistance." **_

_When Jazzie returned to the base, she immediately went into her room and went to bed. Though she didn't sleep; she spent hours staring at the white ceiling, waiting for exhaustion to take over her senses. It never came. According to the government, she was dead, her parents were really dead, same with her grandparents and now the Autobots were her guardians. Would anything be the same again…_

"Would you rather be unprotected and at the mercy of the decepticons?" Optimus asked frowning.

"No, of course not, but come on Prime. I've been in this base for six years. Other than the Lennoxes, Maggie, Glen and occasionally Secretary Keller, I've never seen another human in person. I need to stretch my legs."

This made several of the Autobots "giggle" because the base was so large that close to eight hundred Jazz clones could comfortably stretch their legs in the main room alone.

"We shall see" Optimus replied and then left, the Autobots moving aside so their leader could pass through. Then the crowd of metal men dispersed slowly until Ironhide, Bee, and Ratchet were remaining with Jazz.

Jazz frowned and her face turned red. She was ready to explode.

"I watched them die!" she yelled suddenly. The three mechs turned to look at the distraught girl. Shock filled their optics.

"I watched them all be tortured and murdered. I heard their screams! I heard them become silent. I heard that monster laugh with sick glee! I watched my coffin be lowered underground. Empty. I might as well have been in there myself! That is all I am, I am dead to this world!" she began to shudder, sobs wrenching out, her heart rate accelerating…

Bee stood in shock. His spark couldn't handle what such a young woman was saying. His Sam's death still left a deep and hollow feeling in his spark. For most of Jazz's upbringing, Bee had lost some of his own joy and happiness, his attitude became darker.

"Don't you ever say that." Ratchet glowered. "Don't think that for one nano-click. You are our hope, our joy. We still have you. We didn't lose you."

"How can you be so sure?" she said defiantly. The sobs ebbing away, replaced with anger.

"You are here. You are speaking to us. You have a pulse. We can see emotion on your face. What more is there?" Ironhide asked.

"What about a soul? I don't feel like there is one. I just exist…" Jazz climbed off the berth and left the medical bay.

The doors of her room swung open as they always did, revealing a messy/clean room that was cluttered with books, electronic equipment such as a laptop, and cd player. Clothes lay in neat little piles. Her walls were butter yellow with black streaks and dots. They were covered with pictures, posters, and even training tips she received. The most special part of the room was a small "shrine" that consisted of items from her old life. Pictures of her family, special trinkets of theirs were upon a table covered with a silver cloth. Next to which was her desk that held bits of papers, cds, and jewelry. Her jewelry consisted primarily of pieces with the autobot insignia on them. Every year on her birthday and Christmas, Bumblebee presented her with a new piece. Last year she received an ankle bracelet and a ring. Wrought in silver, the symbol for the Autobots was emblazoned upon each.

She kicked off her army boots and fell onto her tie-dye bedspread. She crawled into the covers, fully clothed in her training attire: cargo shorts and a brown t shirt middrift with full body length black under-armor underneath. She rolled up the sleeves of her under armor and nestled under the covers, her brown shoulder length hair tangled under her head. Jazz knew she was right and that the Autobots believed it too. No matter how much she wanted to deny it, she was losing a winless battle. They would never let her see the world beyond these walls so long as the decepticons were around.

With these thoughts, she fell into a troubled sleep.

Optimus sat in his chair, as he often did, unsure of what to do. Surely the decepticons would never suspect that Jasmine was still among the living, but if one of them engaged his troops and she were among them, she would be vulnerable. Then again, every human on this planet was vulnerable to the decepticons. But he couldn't hide them as well.

Not all of them hold a secret power; the residue from the all spark, passed down from father to daughter. Anything could happen, and he would never forgive himself if another human had to suffer and die for this cause that they never chose to be involved with.

He wished it were possible to leave this planet. The Ark was left with Ultra Magnus, the last time he was known to be online. It is unclear what happened, but he disappeared. That was a heavy blow to the Autobot forces. Prime had to assume all command. There were no troops able to leave their posts to search for the missing commander. Autobot forces were already stretched and scattered to the point were none could keep open communication.

Such memories were painful for the old mech. There were times when he just wanted to lay down and join his offline wife—Elita 1—in the well of all sparks. But then he saw the determination in his soldiers' faces and knew he had to go on. Jazz was his little ray of hope. All he ever wanted was for her to be safe and happy. So far he had achieved the first part, but he left out the second, unintentionally of course. The desire for human companionship was strong in the young girl's heart. He had assumed that the Lennoxs', Glen, and Maggie would be enough to feed Jasmine's hunger for human communication.

He was mistaken.

She has lived with mech's for over half of her life; all she knows is the life of an autobot, an autobot in war. Although he didn't want to believe it to be possible, the back of his processor always thought that maybe her attitude, anger, and inability to control her spark energy was because of this.

He didn't want to lose her. The loss of Sam and Mikaela has already left a hole in his spark, especially in Bumblebee's. The poor young mech still cannot handle their deaths. He is even more protective of Jasmine than himself at times. The moment the Decepticons find out about Jazz, she will immediately be targeted as the daughter of the murderer of Megatron. If they get their claws on her, there is no saying what will happen.

A knock came at his door.

"Enter" he replied, after a moment of coming out of his thinking stream.

It was Red Alert.

"Sir, I have the data tables you require. The Decepticons have made no attempt to attack. They are unusually silent."

"It would appear so." Optimus replied, taking the stack of data tables, looking them over.


	2. Be Patient

I don't own anything Transfomers…I never will…I will always envy those who do

Also…I don't own any of the referenced songs, movies, etc.

All I own is my imagination.

Enjoy

Chapter 3 Be Patient

Jazz sat on her bed staring at her laptop, typing a physics paper for Perceptor; she wasn't getting anywhere fast.

"Argh…why does this guy insist on seven pages of straight equations, I'd rather do laps around the base"

But the essay wasn't the only thing bothering the young girl. Her scheduled meeting with Optimus was approaching faster than Jazz could anticipate. Although she trusted the gentle mech with her life, she feared that she would fail him again. Optimus was patient, but Jazz knew she didn't share this trait. It was always so much easier to let her emotions run on their own, not bottle them up.

The clock read 1:30. Five minutes until potential failure. She didn't know what to expect from these lessons.

Relieved to escape her essay and terrified of facing her demons, she closed the laptop and pulled on an oversized blue sweatshirt with a red autobot insignia stamped on the front. Her hair brought back into a bandana and ripped jeans snugly worn at her hips, Jazz reluctantly left her room and walked down the halls; the death knoll ringing in her mind.

Jazz passed Sideswipe and Sunstreaker (looking suspicious as usual, standing in front of 'Hide's door), Mirage, and Burr. As she passed them, each gave her a look of sympathy and tried to make her smile. Like that would help.

A foreboding doorway stood at the end of the hallway, Jazz began to feel the walls tighten around her as she got further. It was a foot away from her. Her arm felt like lead as she raised it to knock. A moment of hesitation. She could just run back to her room. Before this could be done, the door slide open; Jazz caught a glimpse of Red Alert sitting at a desk next to Optimus' massive desk (filled with data tables, more data tables and…you guessed it, data tables).

"Good day Ms. Jasmine, might I inquire why you are hear?" Red Alert said with a strange look on his face.

Jazz frowned, she hated when people called her 'Jasmine'. She preferred to be called 'Jazz' in honor of the autobot who died protecting this world. Jazz had been told the story a thousand times.

"I'm here to see Optimus, he was gonna give me some lessons" Jazz said folding her arms and sighing in frustration.

"I'm sorry, but I believe you have made a mistake, you have no scheduled meetings with Optimus until next month. You may go now"

"What?" Jazz asked in bewilderment "You were there when we made this appointment"

"No I wasn't"

"I'm sure you were"

"I'm not going to argue with you, young lady"

"Hey, don't blame me for your lack of memory skills"

"My memory core is functioning properly thanks, I wish I could say the same for yours"

"Watch it pal"

"Watch what? You're optics are malfunctioning, go see Ratchet"

"I'm not gonna see Hatchet! Now, I just wanna get this stupid lesson over with so get Optimus in here. I've got a paper to write, single spaced"

"Don't blame me for your lack of planning"

Jazz was about to blow a gasket. The hilarious thing she realized, though, was that the guy was a humongous armed robot that could squish her in an instant, yet she could look past that. Red Alert was really starting to irritate her. With a flash, her arms began to glow.

About ready to yell autobot profanity, Jazz was cut off before she could even make out the words.

"As the human phrase goes: I have my work cut out for me. Thank you Red Alert for your assistance"

Optimus appeared behind Jazz; Mirage could be seen walking down the hallway, away from Optimus's office. He seemed to be holding back laughter. Jazz just stared in amazement as Red Alert gave her a look halfway between pity and amusement. Once Red Alert had left the office, the doors swung shut immediately. They were alone. Any opportunity to turn back and run away had just vanished.

"What on earth Optimus? Why the pit were you hiding?" Jazz asked, her arms fizzling with bits of electricity sparking down them.

"To prove a point; look at yourself" Optimus sat at his desk, fingers folded with his chin rested on them. He didn't seem angry, almost indifferent to Jazz's glowing arms. She looked down at them, a pang of guilt erupted inside of her. It was embarrassing that she had slipped up, allowed her temper to take over. But that was just the way she was.

"What, I can't control my temper, big deal. Sunny and Sides don't end up in the Ratchet's pit o' doom with Ironhide controlling his temper? Why should I? Why have me learn from a mech who doesn't display any amount of control over his anger?"

Optimus stood up, his face more solemn than ever.

"Ironhide is the most composed mech that I have ever worked with. Yes he does tend to be over zealous when delivering revenge to the twins, but he is the only one they fear. He uses this fear to keep them in control, for the most part." A small chuckle escaped his voice box.

"Well, I don't think that I can control this, I don't even know what it is." Jazz said, staring at her arms as they began to cease their glowing. Her energy level began to drop…again.

"I have my theories, but the most logical would be that you posses some residue from the allspark."

"Run that by me again" Jazz asked taking a seat in a human sized chair. The strength in her legs gave way, causing her to tumble in the nearest seat.

"When your father destroyed Megatron, he used the allspark to overload Megatron's spark, thus offlining him. Very similar to a human heart attack. However, Samuel was in direct contact with the substance, fusing the energy within his body. As far I am aware, it became dormant inside of him; no tension to spark its activity."

"So where do I tie into this" Jazz asked as she picked absently at a loose thread on her sweater, her eyes never left Optimus'.

The mech continued,

"I believe that when you were born, your father passed this along to you, through your mother. A part of your genes was given the all spark energy. It too remained dormant, until the night you were attacked."

Jazz's heart skipped a beat; she tried to evade the onslaught of memories that were emerging from her memory, no such luck.

"When we arrived, your mother had strange burn marks, yet you had none. Bumblebee tried to lift you up, but he was 'stung' by your sparking arms. The adrenaline cascading through your system activated the all spark part of your genes as a mode of defense. At least, that is what I believe happened."

Jazz had to take a moment and absorb this. She possessed the powers that the all spark had. She could bring life to machine, theoretically. But all it was whenever she used it was as a shield. It was sporadic, dangerous, she could never control it. A sick thought occurred to her; if the decepticreeps got her, they would force the spark from her body to do what they came for: new machines. They could reawaken Megatron, just because she would get angry. No wonder the Autobots wouldn't let her go away from the base; she was too important for them to lose.

"Is that why you are afraid to let me out of the base? Is that why you don't want me to have a normal life?"

"I did not intend for you to be placed in this situation. However, the power of the all spark is too important to be left fending for itself. You must be protected at all times."

Protected. Safe. Guarded. Those words were so common in Jazz's mind. It didn't matter that she could fight, that Ironhide had spent countless hours teaching her how to defend herself. She was still a human, a squish-able object that could be hurt with the slightest squeeze of mech fingers.

"There is a line between protecting and smothering. I'm confident we crossed that line the moment you placed secret access codes on the doors to keep me in the base"

Last year, Jazz had attempted to go outside by herself. Let's just say that after her time being "grounded" she could tell the time of the day without looking out of a window or at a clock.

"Do you resent me for this?" Optimus asked curiously.

Jazz was taken aback. She didn't know what to think of his question. Sure she was mad that he always kept her under lock and key, but it was because he didn't want her to be put into danger. He cared about her; everyone on this base cared to the death about her. They would put an end to their own sparks to keep her alive.

"No…I don't think so…but if I didn't have the all spark in me, would you still have these security measures?"

"Yes" was all Optimus replied. There was an extended pause.

Jazz was about to speak again when Optimus interjected.

"Well" he started again "let's get started on controlling your anger. I would like you to clear your mind, just like when you prepare for combat practice. No one else exists in this room"

Jazz closed her eyes, slowing her breath to a relaxed state. The silence felt wonderful, even though she still had the inkling that she was being watched.

"Do not worry about me" he said, as if reading her thoughts "I am not here"

Jazz began to slip away from herself. She picked a gentle instrumental tune to listen to in her mind as she allowed the silence to consume her. _Duh dum dud a dum duh dum dud a dum…_

"WHERE DO YOU KEEP THE SOAP CARL? *car screech* *baby crying* LOOK AROUND YOU HELEN, WE'RE ON THE THRESHOLD OF HELL! *nails on a chalkboard* LUCILE, GET THE HOG OUT OF THE KITCHEN! *gun fire* *more gun fire*"

The most bizarre audios were emitting from Optimus' sound box, and they weren't helping Jazz concentrate.

"What on earth are you doing Optimus?" she asked opening her eyes. The mech didn't respond. He stood there with an almost blank expression on his face.

"LOUD NOISES! IT'S THE EYE OF THE TIGER IT'S THE THRILL OF THE FIGHT!* car horns* *monkies screeching*"

"SHUT UP OPTIMUS!" Jazz finally yelled after three minutes of straight random sound clips.

"You must be patient, Jasmine. In battle, you will be surrounded by strange sounds. It is important to not lose your focus, no matter how ridiculous they may seem."

"Sure, because I know that I'm gonna have to cater to screaming monkeys."

"You need to open yourself up to the possibility that you may have to face a threat without us. We won't always be there to watch over you."

"If you guys ever let me leave, maybe I might actually believe that is possible"

Optimus sighed. On the inside, he was resisting the urge to 'snap' at the insubordinate child; on the outside, he was shaking his head in frustration.

"How many times must we discuss this, until I believe it is the proper time for you to reenter the world, you are to remain here. When you can be patient, then you can go to the outside world. Until then, no more arguing, is that clear?"

Jazz sighed. She didn't want to be patient; she wanted to see the world before she died. But that wasn't her decision. Optimus had his reasons for her to stay on the base, no matter how annoying they were.

"Crystal clear sir" she said with a frown.

"You may go; we will continue this in three days, same time and place, understood"

Jazz nodded and left the room. As she walked by the rec-room, she could here Sideswipe doing impressions of the annoying sound pieces that Optimus had played. Jazz had to smile.

She continued down the hall; Bee was following her. He seemed not to be talking in case she wanted silence. Not wanting to keep the tension going, Jazz stopped and turned. Holding up her hands, Bee picked her up around the torso and they continued towards Jazz's room.

"I can see that your lesson didn't go well." He said trying to break the silence.

"Yeah…Optimus wants me to be patient, but I don't know how."

"This will take time…do not be discouraged. I know you will find the way"

Jazz nestled deeper into her guardian's hand, hugging his thumb. No matter what happened, she knew she could rely on his kind words.

"How long?"

Bee stared at her with sympathy.

"That all depends upon you my little one. Patience was something I also couldn't grasp when I was younger. But I wasn't given the time and attention you receive now…war is a time consuming thing. I had to learn patience for myself."

"How?"

"I didn't focus on the prize…I focused on the moment. What I needed to truly achieve a patient mind was to be patient myself. Wait to strike, never let your opponent take your guard down."

"You sound like Ironhide" Jazz said with a smile.

"That's good, considering he raised me. If I don't sound like him after all those years then I don't know what to think."

"'Hide was your nanny?" Jazz said stifling a giggle. Bee even gave a small smile.

"In several ways he could be seen as that. I was the last one to be born on Cybertron…as far as we know. The old mech had been there…too many blows to the cannon. I don't know, but we seemed to connect the moment I was online. I never knew my mother, or father. Ironhide was the closest thing to a parent."

Any attempt at giggling was over. Jazz had a new found respect for the old mech; dealing with Bee as kid must've done a number on poor Ironhide's mind. But if he could do it while fighting off decepticreeps, then she could too…hopefully.

"I'll try to be patient."

"_Do…or do not. There is no try"_

"Thank you for the comment Bee; it's been noted."

"_I am your father" _

"Alright Bee, now you're pushing it."

"_Do not underestimate the power of the dark side" _

"We need to stop having movie night"

Bee laughed deeply as they entered Jazz's room. It was moments like these that reminded him of his time with Sam. They would always watch movies together…even though Bee would often look them up online before they watched them. It was an intriguing experience to observe a human's reaction to moments in a film.

He gently dropped Jazz onto her bed and sat down on the floor next to her.

"I believe you have an essay to write"

"Hey…be patient wise-bot. I've got all day."

"Not according to Perceptor's schedule. It's due in an hour." Bee watched as Jazz went from pale, to deadly pale to sheet white; a very amusing sight.

"This is why patience needs to die!" Jazz screamed as she began to type furiously on her laptop.

End of Chapter—

Alright guys…let me know what you think…questions, concerns. Also, I am relatively knew to the Transformer world (been a fan for nearly six months) I want to get the right mindset down for the characters. The ones I have mentioned but not really used are waiting for character development and I was wondering if you could give me some insight into them.

Mirage, Blurr, Gears, BlueStreak, Inferno, Kup, Cliff Jumper, Hound…I know of them, but would really like to get inside of them better.

Thank you!

Oh…and if you wanted to request strange sound clips…they aren't ending anytime soon.

Review!!!!

BTF


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3 In Memoriam

A/N: Sorry I have not updated in forever…my mind went on a "I don't want to write even though I have free time" phase but here is the next installment. Also, updates should come more regularly despite the fact that I am going off to college because I have most of the chapters written at least 80% of the way done. Thank you for your patience, Optimus would be proud.

In Memoriam

"You would think that after an hour of doing this they would stop…right?" Jazz asked Bee, reclining on the Autobot-sized couch. The yellow mech shrugged.

"One of life's greatest mysteries before us…" Bee mused absently. He couldn't take his optics off the sight before him.

"Should we get Ratchet…or someone who could explain this to us?"

"He wouldn't understand…best to let the impossible continue on."

Across from them, Sideswipe and Sunstreaker were in the midst of an intense staring contest in which neither bot had been declared the winner. It seemed ridiculous at first, but Jazz came to find that she had little interest in anything else but staring at the twins as they tried to make the other flinch. Mech optics were much different from human eyes in that they don't close themselves so frequently nor are prone to move around as much. The game was pointless, yet Sides and Sunstreaker found it entertaining.

"Are your optics tiring, brother?" Sides asked, his brother gave him a scowl.

"Never, I could keep them open forever."

"For the love of Primus, what are those slaggers doing?" Ratchet asked as he entered the recreation room.

"Staring contest" Jazz replied, her smile growing as the look on Ratchet's face turned from confusion to horror to bewilderment. "…A human game that doesn't normally last this long"

"They are competing to see who can stare longer?" Ratchet replied slowly, rubbing his metal forehead with disbelief.

"It's a fun game, Hatchet." Sides said, his optics not leaving Sunstreaker.

"I'm sure it is…Prowl's processor would've gone on the fritz if he could see what you two are doing now."

Ratchet suddenly tensed, as if what he had said were the ultimate taboo; the other mechs in the room turned to stare at him, a dark look filling their face-plates. Jazz noticed this, she was confused.

"Who is Prowl?"

She was greeted with a look of sympathy. Even Kup couldn't mask his sadness.

"…One of the Autobot's best tacticians and most loyal members." Ironhide said solemnly.

"Not to mention brave" Kup added, "I never knew a mech so dedicated to his work."

"He sounds like a good soul" Jazz said, "What did Ratchet mean by his processor going on the fritz?"

A collection of low chuckles filled the room.

"Whenever he would encounter something illogical, his poor processor would overload, causing him to temporarily offline." Ratchet explained, a ghost of a smile sat on his face.

"What happened to him?"

The mood darkened even more. Sunstreaker and Sideswipe temporarily paused their game to stare at the girl with a hint of a glare.

"We're not sure what happened." Ironhide explained, "He went on a solo scouting mission and we lost contact before his report could be transferred to us. Later on, hints of a Decepticon ambush lead the final story that he had been kidnapped and eventually offlined."

"It was a dark day for the Autobots when his gun had been left at the scene of the ambush, months later. Optimus had been crushed beyond belief, however he didn't show this pain. A strong mech, Optimus is." Ratchet added, his gaze downcast.

"I'm sorry." Jazz said, resisting the urge to cry in front of the mechs.

"Don't be ashamed of showing your emotions," Bumblebee told her after noticing the redness of her face, "We live in hope that his spark went to Primus and to the Well of All Sparks."

"If anyone deserved that honor, it is Prowl." Kup said, taking a rather large sip of regular-grade oil.

There was a moment of silence in honor of the mech, in which Jazz reflected on the story she had been told. From what she had been told, this loss was still felt and held a heavy burden upon her family. She wanted to help, she wanted to ease their pain, but no ideas came to mind. Jazz felt even more useless as Bee and the twins held their faces in their hands.

Jazz knew that despite his strong exterior, Ironhide was also grieving for the loss of Prowl. Everyone had their coping methods and for some—like Ironhide—they would focus on maintaining a strong appearance to keep others together. The loss of a teammate seemed difficult for Jazz to understand, partly because she had never witnessed the death of one of her Autobot wards, neither the loss of a human soldier like Lennox or Epps. Despite this, she could feel the pain emanating from them and felt a solemn respect for the dead grow inside of her. Perhaps it was like how she felt when she lost her parents, yet she would never know personally unless the unspeakable happened: one of her Autobot friends died. She hoped desperately that wouldn't happen. She wasn't as strong as her Autobot brothers, she couldn't cope with the loss as others could.

Crawling into Bee's waiting fingers, she hugged his thumb, fearing he would disappear if she didn't. She could never fathom the loss of her best friend. He was the reason she kept living, the source of her happiness. Bumblebee was the torch that guided her and she would rather die than see him suffer. The love for him went way beyond a friendship, it was an unbreakable bond that kept her moving in the right direction. Jazz wouldn't have it any other way.

Eventually, Sides and Sunny returned to their staring contest, a certain light of life had left their optics, leaving a half-empty shell-like appearance. Jazz continued, watching them, resting in the palm of her guardian's hand.

She made a silent prayer to anyone who would listen, anyone who would help: _"Ease their pain and guide Prowl's spark to a place of happiness and peace. I may not know him well enough but I know he deserves at least that much. Please." _


End file.
